US Man Linked to Aussie Gunmen Strikes Plea Deal with Federal Attorneys
An American citizen linked with the perpetrators behind the deadly Wieambilla, Australia shooting that took the lives of six individuals – among them two officers from Queensland – has agreed to a watered-down plea agreement.
Arizona-based Donald Day Jr will face court on October 21 after striking the plea deal with American authorities.
The individual with prior convictions, known online as “Geronimo’s Bones”, is anticipated to admit guilt to a single offense of unlawfully possessing firearms and ammunition in a arrangement to be approved by the court in the current month.
Links to Australian Shooters
Investigators confirmed clear connections between Day and Gareth and Stacey Train through online posts.
The Trains, along with Gareth’s brother Nathaniel, murdered Queensland police officers Matthew Arnold and Rachel McCrow, and neighbour Alan Dare at a remote property in Wieambilla in 2022.
They were killed in a final shootout with law enforcement, following a extended standoff at the regional property.
American officials said Day corresponded via social media with the Trains around the time of the deadly ambush.
Day referred to Queensland officers as “malignant, malformed and malevolent”, and said they should be shown “absolutely no quarter”, telling them he wanted to be at Wieambilla in person.
Court documents outlined how Gareth and Stacey Train had uploaded an end-times recording on YouTube after the incident, saying authorities “came to kill us and we killed them”.
“Failing to stand against these evil forces makes one a coward … we’ll see you at home, Don. Love you,” they expressed.
Firearms Cache and Court Case
Court documents reveal Day stockpiled a cache of nine high-powered firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition at a rural property in Heber, Arizona, that was equipped with a gun range, gun room and sniper hide.
“The firearms and ammunition were kept in the mobile home I shared with S.S., in a room we called the ‘gun room’,” Day said in the plea deal submitted in court.
Day stated he frequently used both the weapons storage and the firearms, and also trained others on how to operate the firearms properly.
The bargain will lead to charges dropped that pertain to the accused making of threats to officials and FBI agents.
Based on court documents, the individual had been banned from owning guns and arms because of his history of violent crimes.
Day, who has completed two years in custody, could receive a maximum penalty of up to 15 years in jail or a penalty of US$250,000 (A$381,500), but the agreement stipulates he will be judged under the low end of the sentencing guidelines.
